How Will AI Affect the Print Industry?

Since its introduction to Europe in the 15th Century, printing has been at the forefront of technological innovation in two ways. Printing is an enabler of innovation, in that its products enable the dissemination of information, but it is also driver of innovation. The race to develop more efficient ways of combining ink and paper has seen great leaps forward in chemistry, chromatics and, in our own time, the digital processing of images. Futurologists predict that Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be the next wave of technological advancement. What implications will this hold for the print industry? 

Advanced Algorithms

Like all devices that utilise computer software, digital printers already make use of sophisticated algorithms. But the level of sophistication in an AI algorithm is much higher. What distinguishes an AI algorithm from its simpler cousin that we use every day is its ability to learn. Given a large enough dataset and a well-defined expected outcome, an AI algorithm can be trained to perform tasks with human-like efficiency. In areas with specifically defined rules and outcomes – notable examples include the games Chess and Go – algorithms now perform better than humans.

Implications for the Print Industry

There are certain tasks within the print industry that a sufficiently advanced algorithm should be able to perform as well as any human: 

• Proofing. The systematic checking for errors can be a laborious process: some aspects of it could be handled by an algorithm. Copywriters who use tools such as Grammarly and Atomic Reach to catch basic typographical errors are already using algorithms developed using machine learning technology. 
  
• Predictive Maintenance. Printing involves a lot of large interconnected machines with intricate parts working at full capacity for long hours. Maintenance is essential but downtime is expensive. AI technology connected to sensors in the printing machines could provide significant cost-savings by determining precisely when maintenance is required – rather than have a human pull everything apart periodically to check. 
  
• Minor Adjustments. A technician is required to oversee the functioning of printing machines and to make minor adjustments throughout the print run to ensure consistency of output. The next generation of printing machines will likely incorporate machine learning software that will automate much of this work.  
  

A Long History of Automation

In some senses, the history of the print industry is a history of increased automation. The printing press itself is a machine that can do the job of a thousand scribes. Instead of copying out manuscripts of the Bible, literate people were free to begin producing their own imaginative, historical and philosophical works – leading to the Age we call the Enlightenment. Hopefully, a new wave of automation caused by the introduction of AI technology will have a similarly liberating effect.

For the time being, if you have a project that requires a human touch, then the team here at Colour Print are ready to help. Email sales@col-print.co.uk or give us a call on 01603 488001. 

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